Used DK weight yarn, instead of super bulky weight yarn, and crocheted with 8mm hook, instead of the recommended 15mm. Basically, I used what I had available.

I crocheted 14 rounds and added 3 more rows to the back and bottom edges. The shrug sits comfortably on my shoulders and has a more open style to it.

All the seams were whip stitched using a tapestry needle and extra yarn.

To finish the sleeves, I added a few rounds of single crochet stitch to the cuffs using a 6mm hook. The cuff band is about 2cm wide.

I also crocheted a few rows of single crochet stitch to the front pieces and around the neck. This is worked in one long continuous row, from the bottom of one front piece to the other. Then turn work, Ch1 and crochet back to the other end. This was repeated several times until the “border” was about 4cm wide.

I worked one row of single crochet stitch to the bottom edge.

In retrospect, I could have made the shrug smaller. I think it’s a few rounds too big and the sleeves too long. It reminds me of a kimono, rather than a shrug. But I am looking forward to wearing it when the weather warms up a little. It is far too cold for a girl who grew up in the tropics! Brrr! At least it’s not raining today. Thank God!

I want one! I just love how the granny square is given a modern and very wearable look. I checked my stash and don’t have enough yarn for it. So I need to go yarn shopping and get a 15mm hook asap. I can’t wait to start crocheting!

Winter nights will not be shadowed by gloom this year. Something gloriously bright and cheerful is here to perk us up during the long hours of darkness. Folded neatly at the foot of our bed are soft rounds of organic cotton, colours intermingling with each other, dark and light shoulder to shoulder. Each stitch crocheted with love and thoughts of being together forever.

Its presence brings forth an awakening to the dulled senses brought on by the cold. I want to touch it, feel it and just gaze at it. The blanket beckons me and I’m too weak to just walk away. It has occupied my time and mind for nearly four months. It owns me, as I it.

The granny square spread proudly across my bed. I snuggled under the warmth and drifted off to sleep that night. I vaguely remember dreaming of rainbows with puffy cotton clouds above me, as I strolled through a tulip-covered field. Was this colourful dream induced by the sight of the forever blanket just before the lights went out?

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about my top 3 ways to wind a centre-pull ball by hand. If you missed the post, you can read it here.

Cami left a great comment about how she uses a turkey baster to wind her yarn. She even linked me to the tutorial she made to do this. Thank you Cami!

She describes her simple method: I take a clean baster and remove the rubber part off the top. Feed the yarn down the baster from the larger end to the small end, leaving a generous amount coming out the end. Then start winding the yarn around the center. It works great because you can easily turn it as you go to get the yarn in a nice ball. When your done, simply slip the ball down the baster (toward the smaller end). Voila! A perfect center pull ball of yarn.

On Sunday, I sat down with a cup of tea on the sofa with my newly purchased turkey baster (only $2.50!) and a luscious skein of EcoOrganic cotton.

You can see that the turkey baster has a similar shape to a nostepinde.